Worship Resources

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HOLY THURSDAY

MUSIC & WORSHIP RESOURCES

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Nolan Williams, Jr., Lectionary Team Liturgist

Worship Planning Notes

Given the thematic focus for today, it would be great for the Holy Thursday worship experience to be connected to a community-service project. Congregants can be encouraged to volunteer time with selected organizations in an effort to connect the focus of Holy Thursday with love-based action.

Audio-visual clips obtained from one or more of these organizations showing your members at work can be shown before and after worship. This project can also be organized in a way that members of the congregation are invited to go on a particular day, perhaps the Saturday between Good Friday and Easter (Resurrection) Sunday.

1. Litany

Holy Thursday: Preparation for Service

Worship Leader:

You knew your hour had come. You knew your betrayer. You knew your enemies. You knew that the straw vote would not be in your favor. But you loved unto the end.

People:

Thank you for loving us, even unto death. Teach us to love like you love. Teach us to love each other, to love even our enemies, like you loved us.

Worship Leader:

You took on the form of a servant, washing the feet of those whom you discipled. You defined humility and servanthood. You are he who was surely sent from God.

People:

Thank you for serving for us. Teach us to be servants without fail; to make humility our constant companion and to seek no glory for ourselves. Remind us when we forget.

Worship Leader:

On that solemn evening, you surrounded yourself with friends and enemies, persons of faith and persons of ill-will.

People:

Help us to be able to always emulate you when we are surrounded by our friends and especially when we are surrounded by our enemies.

Worship Leader:

You have established a “new commandment;” help us to live it out in every moment, in every aspect of our lives, in our families, in our churches, in our communities, and throughout the world.

People:

On this Holy Day, we gather to remember again the miracle that you performed in our lives. You have brought us into the marvelous light. At great cost to you, you have given us new life and life eternal. Amen.

2. Hymns or Anthems
(a) O Love That Will Not Let Me Go. By George Matheson. Music (hymn setting) by
Albert Peace

(b)I Am So Glad That Jesus Loves Me. By Philip Bliss

(c) Here Am I. By Nolan Williams, Jr.

(d) Love Lifted Me. By James Rowe. Tune by Howard Smith

(e) Love Divine, All Love Excelling. By Charles Wesley. Music by John Zundel

3. Traditional Songs
(a) Give Me a Clean Heart. By Margaret Douroux

(b) He’s Calling Me. By Dorothy Love Coates

(c) I Know the Lord Has Laid His Hands on Me. Spiritual. Arr. by R. Nathaniel Dett

4. Gospel Songs for Choirs, Ensembles, or Praise Teams
(a) Use Me (If You Can Use Anything, Lord). By Dewitt and Kim Jones

(b) O Love That Will Not Let Me Go. By Holland Davis

(c) Friend of God. By Israel Houghton

5. Liturgical Dance Music
(a) Love. By Kirk Franklin

(b) Rivers Flow. By Jonathan Dunn

(c) I Wanna Be. By J. Moss

6. Modern Songs
(a) Thirsty. By Jason Nelson

(b) Surgery. By L. Spenser Smith

(c) Drench My Heart. By Jonathan Nelson and Amos Saint-Jean

7. Offertory Songs
(a) I Will Go in Jesus’ Name. By Clay Bogan, III

(b) Jesus Is All. By Fred Hammond

(c) Walk On in Jesus’ Name. By Michael Mathis

8. Song or Instrumental for the Period of Prayer
(a) Sitting at His Feet. By Steven Carey. Arr. by Carol Cymbala

(b) Oh, How He Loves You and Me. By Kurt Kaiser

(c) A Perfect Sacrifice. By V. Michael McKay

9. Sermonic Selection
(a) Use Me. By Walt Whitman

(b) No Greater Love. By Noel Hall, Fred Hammond, and Kim Rutherford

10. Invitational Song
(a) Where He Leads Me I Will Follow. By E. W. Blandy. Tune by John Norris

(b) I Have Decided to Follow Jesus. Indian Folk melody. Tune by Paul B. Smith.
Harmony by Norman Johnson

(c) I Surrender All. By Judson Van De Venter. Tune by Winfield Weeden

11. Benediction Song or Instrumental
(a) We Must Work. By Keith C. Laws

(b) As You Go, Tell the World. Arr. By Valeria Foster

Cites and Additional Information for Music and Material Listed

1. Litany“Holy Thursday: Preparation for Service.” By the Lectionary Liturgical Team

2. Hymns or Anthems
(a) O Love That Will Not Let Me Go. By George Matheson. Music (hymn setting) by
Albert Peace
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